A leopard was observed in Karabakh, in the direction of Kalbajar

A leopard was observed in Karabakh, in the direction of Kalbajar A leopard was observed in Karabakh, in the direction of Kalbajar https://innews.media/en/news/id-32803

Recently, after liberation of the territories, soldiers were the first to observe leopards. Following this, regular tracking and monitoring conducted by the Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources of Azerbaijan, IDEA Public Union, and WWF resulted in high-quality photos and videos of leopards in the Kalbajar region. Elshad Askerov, director of the Azerbaijan office of the World Wide Fund (WWF), announced this at a press conference held at the MENR on the topic "Leopard Population in Azerbaijan: Efforts in Biodiversity Restoration and Ecotourism Development."

"Let me note that the dense population of bezoar goats, which are the natural prey of leopards, in these areas is one of the main conditions for the spread of this rare species in Karabakh. Leopards have been found in the Karabakh volcanic plateau since ancient times."

According to Elshad Askerov, the Zangezur and Talish mountains are the main areas where leopards are found in Azerbaijan. The observation of leopards in Karabakh, in the direction of Kalbajar, as well as their appearance in the gray mountains around Lake Mingachevir in the Greater Caucasus, is the result of the purposeful activity of the government of Azerbaijan, including the Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources, in restoring the leopard population, protecting it, and expanding its range.

"The presence of fertile conditions for the restoration and development of biological diversity in our country made us confident that leopards would be found in the Karabakh region and in Kalbajar, and this was confirmed as a result of our monitoring."

According to Elshad Askerov, monitoring of leopards in our country began in 2002. Leopards were first recorded in the Talish mountains in 2007 and in Zangezur in 2012, which are the first photos of leopards taken in natural conditions in Azerbaijan.

"To date, as a result of monitoring, 9 adults and 9 cubs have been photographed in Nakhchivan, and 8 adults and 2 cubs have been photographed in the Hirkan forests. Due to intensive conservation measures, the birth of leopard cubs has been observed only in Azerbaijan in the Caucasus. The cubs born and raised in our territory later spread to neighboring countries. Two of them were even observed in Turkey, and one traveled all the way to the Black Sea basin."

Elshad Askerov said that in the last century, due to anthropogenic effects, the number of leopards in our region decreased to a critical level and faced the threat of extinction.
"Leopards have lived in Azerbaijan since ancient times. The global range of leopards includes Africa and Asia. Azerbaijan is on the northern edge of this range. Leopard remains were found in soil layers dating back 400,000-300,000 years in Azerbaijan, and petroglyphs of leopards were found on the rocks of Gobustan, Gamigaya, and Dalidag.

Cheetah and leopard skulls were found in the ancient human settlement of Gobustan. This species once lived almost everywhere in our country. Observations in recent years show that we have managed to achieve the development dynamics of the leopard population in Azerbaijan."